Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an umbilical cord blood collection vessel and method of using same.
Description of the Prior Art
Anyone who has visited a hospital surgical room in recent times, knows very well the painstaking precautions taken to prevent unwanted exposure to patient bodily fluids including blood as well as the occurrence of accidental needle sticks. Notwithstanding the inherent dangers, it is necessary for a patient's bodily fluid to be sampled. Umbilical cord blood must be sampled to ascertain blood type as well as Rh factor. It may even be necessary to preserve an infant's umbilical cord blood for the stem cells such blood contains.
Historically, umbilical cord blood was collected in one of two ways. First, a hypodermic needle could be inserted into the umbilical cord to withdraw the necessary blood. The blood would then be transferred to a rubber stoppered collection tube. Second, the free end of the umbilical cord, that not attached to the placenta, is held over the opening of a test tube and the cord blood allowed to drip or drain into such test tube. The problem with both these types of procedures were that it could not eliminate the hazard that operating/deliver room personnel might be exposed to the cord blood which might be contaminated with all sorts of infectious diseases as well as the occurrence of accidental needle sticks.
In an attempt to provide a safer and more efficient way to collect umbilical cord blood, Michael D. Grossman, et al, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,384, issued Jun. 29, 1999, for Medical Body Fluid Sampler Device, and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,342,328, issued Aug. 30, 1994, disclosed a funnel shaped apparatus which allowed cord blood to collect and gravity drain into a collection tube. Anyone that has had to gravity flow any type of fluid, let alone fluid that may contain body cells and tissue, knows the problems inherent in this approach, i.e., the flow becomes restricted. Once flow is restricted, most likely the sample of blood will be lost and/or hospital personnel exposed to the blood when attempts are made to remove the restriction.
Peter Yong in US Patent Publication No. 2006/0039833, published Feb. 23, 2006, and US Patent Publication No. 2007/0025886, published Feb. 1, 2007, for Biological Specimen Collection, Transportation, and Dispensing System, in FIG. 81 discloses an apparatus for the collection of umbilical cord blood. The primary emphasis of the Yong disclosure was for use in urine collection. In order to collect urine, i.e., allow a user to urinate into the collection device, one would need a collection device that was relatively tall and narrow as is shown in Yong. In lay person's vernacular, one would need a cup. It is not necessary that the Yong cup be stable when placed on a table because that is not when the sample is being collected. As seen in FIG. 81 of Yong, the needle used to withdraw the collected umbilical cord blood is long running almost the entire height of the cup. The tube, identified as item 762 in Yong, into which the cord blood is drawn, would no doubt increase the instability of the Yong cup, shifting the center of gravity of the cup far to the left. One can clearly see in FIG. 81 of Yong that the cup would surely fall over in its depicted embodiment. In Yong however, being primarily used to collect urine, the stability of the device was not an issue.
Charles David Cawood, in two US Patents, U.S. Pat. No. 4,557,274 issued Dec. 10, 1985, for Midstream Urine Collection and U.S. Pat. No. 5,766,136 issued Jun. 16, 1998 for Midstream Urine Collector with Deflection Shield, discloses a device which arguably could be used for umbilical cord blood collection. Like Yong, since the primary emphasis is for urine collection, the device in Cawood must be tall and narrow. As can be seen in FIG. 6 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,557,274, once urine is collected, tube 29 is forced down onto needle 27. This requires force and without the legs shown in FIG. 6, the collection apparatus would surely tip over. The legs shown, however, cannot overcome the inherent instability of the Cawood apparatus.
Recently, a device sold under the name “Umbilicup” has appeared in the market place. The Umbilicup is a one piece collection device which consists of a funnel insert into which blood is allowed to collect. Through the bottom of the Umbilicup, a syringe with needle is inserted into the funnel insert and blood withdrawn. In order to insert the syringe, however, the medical professional is exposed to a potential of an accidental needle stick and the Umbilicup must be lifted and held by the medical professional, raising the potential that blood could be spilled and/or the Umbilicup dropped.